Thailand, what a place!

Lovely place, Thailand. Lovely indeed. The land of smiles, they say. Everyone smiles here, all day, everyday. At first I thought there was something wrong with me and they were laughing at me. Then I thought they might be high. Turns out they just smile. Wow, haven’t seen that in a while. I usually dread the moment I have to go to the bust station to purchase a ticket or to the post office to pick something up. That’s because I’m quite used to the unkindness of the people behind the counter. You know that feeling, right? Or God forbid you have to call the telephone company, because they’ve massively overcharged you and you know you’d have to fight them in order to get back what’s yours. Here, in Thailand, they just smile. Whether they’re behind the counter, bar tending, selling goods on the streets or driving cabs. Yeah, of course the tuk tuk driver is trying to rip me off, because I’m a stupid European tourist who doesn’t know squat about the prices. But if I am doomed to get ripped off I might as well get ripped off by a smiling person.

Tolerant place. Tolerant indeed. I did not imagine Thailand to be so accepting. Turns out it accepts everyone. You can be a ladyboy, a tomboy, straight or gay and no one will even care about that. I find it fantastic. However, not being used to seeing all that I as well did act like a primitive hillbilly that I normally tend to despise. When I had to wait at the airport or at the bus station crowded with people, with time to kill I played a game of guessing: Lady? Boy? Ladyboy? Tomboy? I’m quite sure I saw a ladyboy flight attendant today and she had way better legs than I do. Which could both mean that she really did have fantastic legs, or that mine are so butch that everyone else’s seem fantastic. But enough about that, I’m starting to sound like a follower of the famous Croatian association „In the name of the family“ , which managed to include a law in the Croatian constitution, stating that a marriage can happen only between a woman and a man. Oh if only they’d come here, and see that being tolerant to one’s differences has not killed anyone yet.

Relaxing place. Relaxing indeed. There is a massage parlor popping from each and every corner of Thai streets. It s cheap as well. And inside of the parlor there’s relaxing music playing, scented candles and dim lights. Since everyone went on and on about the Thai massage, I as well have decided to try it. It lasts a complete hour, which got me a bit edgy before it even started, because I can’t seem to just lie there for a whole hour. The lady cracks your back, your neck, massages your whole body. They say you feel great after. I didn’t like it, at all. First of all I felt as uncomfortable as I do when I have to pay a visit to my ear/nose/throat doctor, and second of all lying there does not relax me. I had a great techno track in my head and couldn’t stop to play it over and over in my head, moving my foot to the beat, while I was supposed to lie still. Once I got out of the parlor I played the track on my phone, moved that foot around a bit and that’s when I felt relaxation. It doesn’t mean Thai massage is bad, people love it. It just means in not for me. My way of relaxation? Good techno and some dance moves! What’s yours?